New Delhi: Senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was on Wednesday included in India’s 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup alongside Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel and Varun Chakravarthy.
The 34-year-old Ashwin last played white-ball cricket for India in 2017. Kishan and Chakravarthy have been rewarded for their consistent performance in the IPL and the few opportunities they got with the Indian team.
“Former India Captain MS Dhoni to mentor the team for the T20 World Cup,” BCCI Secretary Jay Shah said in a statement. “As far as Dhoni is concerned, I spoke to him when I was in Dubai. He was okay with the decision, and he agreed to be a mentor for team India, for the T20 World Cup only.
“I spoke to the captain (Virat Kohli) and vice-captain (Rohit Sharma) as well as Ravi Shastri (the head coach), and that’s why we reached the conclusion,” Shah added.
Interestingly, swashbuckling opener Shikhar Dhawan, who is experiencing a tough family time, has been left out. Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal have also missed out. The T20 World Cup starts October 17 in the UAE and Oman.
The 40-year-old Dhoni retired from international cricket last year having played his last game in the 2019 World Cup semifinal. It is believed that he has been brought in for his experience in devising white-ball strategy and for also knowing how to win crucial ICC tournaments which have not been the case with his successor.
One of the most successful captains in the history of Indian cricket, the enigmatic wicketkeeper-batsman led India to two world titles — the 2007 T20 World Cup in South Africa and the 2011 ODI World Cup in India.
With Virat Kohli repeatedly losing out on pressure situations in big events, the inclusion of Dhoni will act as a big plus-point not just for the skipper but all the members of the team at a crucial juncture.
TEAM – Virat Kohli (Capt), Rohit Sharma (vc), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohd Shami.#TeamIndia
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 8, 2021
Kohli’s side will open their campaign in a blockbuster Super12 encounter against Pakistan in Dubai on 24 October. Apart from Pakistan, India have been pooled with Afghanistan and New Zealand in Group 2, as well as two sides who progress from Round 1 of the tournament.
The top two teams in each group of the Super 12 stage progress to the semifinals, with the final set to be played in Dubai on 14 November.
Squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami.
